Pausing Time
by Magical Irish Dolphin
Summary: One-Shot: While hiding from the law with Peter Bardford in the year 1796, an injured Victoria Winters reflects on how her life is always so strange.


**Disclaimer**: **Dark Shadows is a Dan Curtis Production and not mine**

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Pausing Time

Victoria Winters collapsed against the cold stone wall in a heavy pant. Sweat dripped down her dirty brow, and her long greasy dark hair flopped between her back shoulders. To think there was a time Vicki thought living in the past was enchanting and romantic.

Since she actually traveled back in time, Vicki found this to be completely untrue. She also received a rude awakening. Upon arriving in the year 1795, Vicki found herself a victim of extreme prejudice. A nutty ancestor from the Collins family, and a fraudulent man of God, accused her of being a witch, and she had been convicted.

She clutched her bloody arm painfully, and thought savagely on how she was framed by the actual witch, Angelique.

Angelique effortlessly tormented and fool people with such incredible ease, even from beyond the grave. Vicki rested her head against the hard stone wall, and recounted the familiar faces she had met in this impossible journey, and how different they were.

Lt. Nathan Forbes resembled her good friend Joe Haskell from her actual timeline of 1967. Joe was one of the nicest and sincere men Vicki had ever met. He made her felt welcome when she first arrived in Collinsport, and had been romantically linked with two of Vicki's closest friends; Carolyn Stoddard and Maggie Evans, both who Joe was deeply devoted to.

The Lieutenant may had shared Joe's face, but he was nothing like the nice young man Vicki knew. Like Joe, the Lieutenant also enjoyed the company of attractive young women, but his intentions were not always honorable as they say. Vicki recoiled when she recalled the first time she met the louse Lieutenant, which happened shortly when she arrived in the past.

She couldn't believed he actually tried to make a pass at her. He was a complete and utter shameless womanizer. Vicki couldn't believed this man actually shared Joe's face. But she kept reminding herself the Lieutenant was not actually Joe. Just like how Millicent Collins wasn't actually her friend, Carolyn Stoddard, or young Daniel Collins wasn't actually her young charge, David Collins, or the Barnabas Collins of 1795 was not the same as the one from 1967. But regardless on who he looked like, Lt. Forbes struck a nerve on Vicki.

Even though he was something of a cad, he wasn't causing actual harm on anyone. In fact, the Lieutenant, along with the original Barnabas Collins, had actually staunchly defended Vicki when she was accused of witchcraft. He, along with Barnabas, even rescued her when Reverend Trask (Vicki thought of him very venomously) tied her up to a tree to leave overnight in one of his deranged tests.

But in no time, the louse Lieutenant became easily corruptible. In the name of reputation and fortune, Lt. Forbes turned on Vicki at her trial, and was wanting to collect on her head.

Taking hard shallowing breaths, Vicki applied pressure on her bloody gunshot wound on her arm. She got struck by a bullet when Peter Bradford busted her out of jail when she was about to be executed.

The most incredible thing was that even though one of Vicki's foes wore the same resemblance to a good friend, another man resembled one of her greatest tormentors from her actual time. But he turned out to be one the most loyal friends Vicki ever received.

When she first met Ben Stokes, Vicki fell into an instant panic. Ben resembled the Collins' caretaker Matthew Morgan, who murdered the Collins' close friend and business associate, Bill Malloy. Matthew held Vicki captive at the Old House for a time. Vicki was graced by the spirit of Josette Collins, who Vicki once felt a strong connection to, and who Vicki was convinced saved her from Matthew Morgan. It was the most frightening and bizarre experience in Vicki's life. (That was until this happened.)

After that ordeal, Vicki thought she would never see the terrible face of Matthew Morgan again. Even though Ben wore Matthew's face, he was nothing like that awful man. Ben was gentle, kind, and generous. Perhaps the sweetest man Vicki ever met.

He tried to defend her when she was accused of witchcraft, and he was the one who put Vicki and Peter in hiding in the secret room at the Collins mausoleum in Eagle Hill Cemetery. Which was how they got here.

The dark stone room was illuminated by various candles, and it was pretty spacious, if not cold and bare. Ben explained the room was once used to hide weapons during the war. Ben even showed them a hidden button under a stone step to get the door open, and departed from them.

As Peter silently sat beside Vicki against the hard stone wall, Vicki wondered if she would ever be in her own timeline again. Would she ever see Carolyn again? Or David? Or Roger Collins and Mrs. Stoddard? Would she ever see Joe Haskell again? Or even Mrs. Johnson? Would she ever contacted Ms. Hopewell and her friends at the Foundling Home in New York City?

Unexpectedly, Vicki thoughts turned to Burke Devlin. Her heart instantly shattered. When she first met Jeremiah Collins, her heart ache over his resemblance to her lost love. And Jeremiah's fate was just as equally tragic as Burke's. Vicki fought the urge to wept. Burke would had wanted her to be strong to live through this ordeal.

Peter checked on Vicki's bullet wound, and asked gently, "How is your arm feeling now, Vicki?"

"Not much better before we got here," Vicki answered him frankly in a grunt. "But I'll deal."

Peter shook his sandy blonde hair, as if scolding himself for asking an obviously stupid question. He went to see if he could somehow improved Vicki's bloody bandage, but all he could do was make it tighter.

"I'm sorry." Peter sighed defeated.

"Don't be," Vicki insisted. "I thought..." she paused. She gazed at Peter, and realized what they'd been through together. Peter became the one true friend Vicki had since arriving at this place.

The best part was unlike so many others, Peter had his own face, and didn't reminded her of anybody. Vicki didn't had to watch herself in calling Peter a wrong name. It was always awkward hanging around Millicent, and Mr. and Mrs. Collins, since they'd shared the faces of Carolyn, Roger, and Mrs. Stoddard respectively.

(Vicki also tried not to gag over how the married patriarch and matriarch wore the same resemblance of the brother and sister duo Roger and Elizabeth, but that was an entirely different matter.)

"You thought what?" Peter urged her gently.

Taking a deep breath, Vicki exhaled, and gazed at Peter. His kind face told her to tell him what was on her mind. Vicki exhaled again, and uttered, "I thought... If I go into the past..." an awkward pause. "I'll finally learn who I am," she finished breathlessly.

On this thought, Vicki once again turned her attention to Josette Collins. The woman she once thought she had a connection to, and the woman she once thought saved her life. Vicki was hungrily obsessed with her. But since traveling back into the past, Vicki didn't felt connected with her anymore. When Vicki first met her, Josette resembled Maggie Evans, and the two didn't became friends like Vicki and Maggie did in their own timeline. Vicki thought Josette would somehow give her answers to her past, but it didn't turned out that way.

Peter took in her words, and understood. Vicki had no family, and felt she didn't belonged anywhere. At first he worried she had gone delirious, but she was really just exhausted and heartbroken.

"It seems no matter what time I'm in, I'm destined to become a governess to the same little boy." Vicki chuckled ironically, faintly.

"You'll find your place in time, Vicki," Peter promised.

"Yeah, after we defeat this injustice." Vicki grimaced over her searing shotgun wound.

"You can count on it," Peter said confidently.

He gave her the most loyal look Vicki had ever seen.

"You really think I can beat this?" Vicki murmured softly.

"Vicki, you taught me that anything is possible," Peter said. "I know you'll make it through this."

Vicki smiled faintly and took comfort in those words. He wrapped his arm around her, and Vicki rested her head against his shoulder. The two fell silent. At the moment, there was no chaos, betrayal, and injustice. Just peaceful glorious silence. It was a beautiful quiet moment belonging to them and no one else. Just them and this secret room in a cemetery litted in a dozen of so candles.

Feeling warm and comforted, Vicki allowed herself to drift. A part of her wondered if this all had been a dream. When she next opened her eyes, she would find herself in her bed - at the Foundling Home.

A part of her heart ache over the prospect of never seeing Peter Bradford again. But the other part of her heart was hopeful in the absurd childlike notion in no matter what, Peter Bradford would follow her anywhere.


End file.
